Beginning March 21, Wyoming will begin issuing driver licenses, permits and identification cards with a new look and additional security features. This makes Wyoming the first state to meet the standards recommended by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators.

AAMVA standards require the documents to include a number of visible and hidden security features to make them difficult to counterfeit. They also require certain types of information be included on each card and appear in standardized areas of the card to make it easier for law enforcement officers and others to find the information quickly.

"We've developed a card that will not only adhere to the standards set nationally, but will also be user friendly to law enforcement, while offering more identity security for Wyoming citizens," said Nancy Coyle, of WYDOT Driver Services. Perhaps the most noticeable change will be that all cards issued to minors will be in a new vertical format that will be instantly distinguishable from adult cards in the traditional horizontal format. Minors' cards also will include the dates when the cardholder will turn 18 and 21 years of age.

Deb Ornelas, WYDOT's Driver Services manager, thanked Rep. Mary Meyer Gilmore of Casper for her support for the new vertical license format. Among the other new security features will be tricolor images on the cards' front laminate, which will be visible when viewed from a certain angle. A ghost image of the cardholder's photo will appear in a second area of the card.

The back of the licenses and ID cards will include a barcode that contains the same information shown on the front of the card. The Cheyenne driver license exam office will begin issuing the new cards Monday. All other exam offices around the state will be issuing the new cards by April 11.